City proclaims Bob Huggins Day

        Cincinnati City Council tried to give Bob Huggins one more reason to stay as the head basketball coach at the University of Cincinnati.

        His own day.

        In an unusual move, Vice Mayor Alicia Reece proclaimed Wednesday “Bob Huggins Day” in the city of Cincinnati.

        “He really helped build that program up; and because of his efforts, we've really built up the Crosstown Shootout,” said Ms. Reece, who was presiding over City Council in place of a a vacationing Mayor Charlie Luken.

1 KILLED IN COLLISION NEAR LEBANON: One student was killed and another injured about 2:15 p.m. Wednesday when their car apparently ran a red light in front of the Warren County Career Center in Clearcreek Township and was struck broadside by a tanker truck. Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers at the Lebanon Post said Adam Johnson, 17, of Lebanon, was killed while riding as a passenger in a Camaro driven by Richard Hall, 17, also of Lebanon. Mr. Hall was flown by CareFlight helicopter to Miami Valley Hospital, where he was treated for a head injury and released. Witnesses said the car was traveling south on Ohio 48 at Ohio 122 and had just left the school when it was hit by the truck carrying 800 pounds of jet fuel. The truck driver, Richard Wells, 42, Hamilton, was not injured. The crash is under investigation. (Gary Landers photo) | ZOOM |

        Most such City Council proclamations are printed on parchment and presented with much fanfare before council meetings. That didn't happen Wednesday, as Mr. Huggins was reportedly in Morgantown to discuss the head coach opening at West Virginia University.
       

Decimated by bug, two schools close

        Widespread illness closed two Greater Cincinnati schools Wednesday.

        Lincoln Heights Elementary in the Princeton City School District remains closed until Friday. Classes are expected to resume today at St. Francis Seraph in Over-the-Rhine.

        On Tuesday, 64 students were absent at Lincoln Heights and another 24 were sent home because of illness. Three teachers were ill. Lincoln Heights has 501 students in grades K-6.

        “We are looking at around an 18 percent absentee rate,” said Sharon Oakes, spokeswoman for Princeton.

        At St. Francis, a K-8 school with 140 students, as many as 35 students had been ill since Friday.

        “By Monday the kids were dropping like flies and the staff was, too,” said Pat Armstrong, assistant school superintendent with the Archdiocese of Cincinnati.

        The school was closed Tuesday and Wednesday.
       

Griffey Sr. leads opening day parade

       Ken Griffey Sr., a member of Big Red Machine World Series champions and currently a special consultant with the Cincinnati Reds, will be Grand Marshal of the 83rd Annual Findlay Market Opening Day Parade on April 1.

        The parade, presented by Chevrolet, will start at 11:30 a.m.

        “This parade is all tradition and history,” Neil Luken, the chief parade organizer and owner of Chas. Bare & Sons at Findlay market, said Wednesday. “Senior is part of Cincinnati, and we're proud that he agreed to serve as grand marshal.”

        Country singer Tracy Byrd will also be in the parade, Mr. Luken said.

        The parade with 165 units, begins at Findlay Market, Elder and Race streets, Over-the-Rhine. The parade will follow its usual 1.5-mile route, ending at Fifth & Broadway between 1 p.m. and 1:30 p.m.
       

OSU tests cell use in heart-failure cases

        Cardiac experts at Ohio State University have begun testing whether transplanting a person's own thigh muscle cells into his heart will help extend life for people with heart failure.

        Up to six patients will be enrolled in the clinical trial.

        Experts hope the procedure can be an alternative treatment for people who otherwise would need heart transplants.

        About 300,000 Americans suffer from heart failure. But only about 2,300 people a year get heart transplants.

        The vast majority of heart failure patients never get on transplant waiting lists, according to the American Heart Association. Instead, they die after attempting a variety of medications and devices that help delay the progress of heart failure.
       

Worker scalded at Zimmer power plant

        MOSCOW, Ohio — A worker was injured Wednesday afternoon at the Zimmer power plant in Clermont County.

        The man was scalded by steam during the removal of slag buildup from inside the plant's coal-fired boiler, Cincinnati Gas & Electric Co. spokesman Dave Woodburn said. The injured man was conscious when taken to Mercy Hospital Anderson shortly after 3 p.m., Mr. Woodburn said.

        Mr. Woodburn did not identify the man, other than to say he worked for a Cleveland-based contractor, MPW, which had been hired to clean the boiler.

        A second man also was taken from the plant to Mercy Anderson, said hospital spokeswoman Karen Kuhn. Both men, who asked that their names not be released, were in good condition, Ms. Kuhn said.

        The accident did not interrupt power generation at the plant.
       

Four men arrested; drugs, money seized

        Four people who police say were involved in marijuana trafficking in southern Ohio have been arrested.

        Robert E. Schneider, 51, of Centerville and Douglas Hartman, 52, of Washington Township in Warren County, were arrested at a suburban Cincinnati hotel March 13.Larry Kapp, 29, and Paul Snyder, 53, of Arizona were also charged in the investigation.

        Search warrants at the homes of Mr. Schneider and Mr. Hartman led to confiscation of trafficking documents, marijuana and nearly $1 million, police said.

        Investigators in Arizona confiscated an additional 1,153 pounds of marijuana and $1.2 million, police said.

        Authorities say they determined that the trafficking organization was transporting 700 pounds of marijuana from Tucson, Ariz., to southern Ohio for distribution.
       

Forest Park makes street-repair contract

        FOREST PARK — Council members have awarded R.A. Miller Construction Co. a $784,672 contract for major street repairs this year.

        The St. Clair Township-based company was the lowest of eight bidders.

        New pavement will appear along Waycross Road between Sharon Road and Northland Drive, and West Sharon Road between Golfview Drive and Northland. beginning in the summer.

        Catch basin and curb and sidewalk work will be done throughout the city.
       

UC research on allergies published

        Using short strands of DNA to stimulate immune response has helped mice fight off allergic reactions to ragweed pollen, according to a study at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.

        Whether the treatment will help humans remains to be seen.

        The study, published in the March issue of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, found that mice were less likely to suffer allergic reactions to ragweed when exposed one week after treatment with ImmunoStimulatory Sequences, developed by Dynavax Technologies Corp.

       The study “provides positive evidence that this substance has the potential to play a role in the treatment of human allergic disorders, including asthma,” said Dr. Marsha Wills-Karp, director of Immunobiology at Cincinnati Children's and the study's lead author.
       

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